Friday, September 3, 2010

As public school starts back, I've been reminded over & over again why I'm glad I home school! So I thought I'd share a few of those reasons with you!

I'm glad I homeschool because:
1. I don't have to send my kids away every day. I actually enjoy having them around!
2. I don't have to schedule our day around the school's schedule. We get up when we want. We stay up till we want.
3. My kids don't have to spend 6 hrs in school followed by 2-3 hrs of homework. Usually 3-4 hours of solid school work & we are done for the day.
4. I don't have to deal with school bus problems whether that be bad drivers, unsafe bus stops or whatever.
5. I don't have to listen to my kids whine that they don't like their teacher. If they don't like me, then we have a problem.
6. I don't have to explain to my kids that behavior they learn from their "peers" is not socially appropriate. They have enough ingrained bad behavior without learning more from their "peers".
7.I don't have to repair damage done to their faith after being taught creation is a lie & that they evolved from goo! We discuss evolution, but they don't have it forced fed to them!
8. We can go on field trips when places are empty because everyone else is in school. Hitting the zoo with less people is fun as is other field trips.
9. We don't have to get up at 6am to get ready for school. Only 1 of my kids is a morning person, so we adjust our days to fit our personalities.
10. We can do school in our PJs. No need to have struggles over what to wear.
11. We can stray from our lesson plans to answer questions & do research on topic our lessons stir interest in. Kids learn so much better when it is something they are invested in & want to learn.
12. My kids can learn using their learning style, not just by listening to teacher talk. My hands on learner & visual learner do well, not just my auditory learner!
13. My kids have low student to teacher ratio! 3 to 1 - can't beat that ratio!!
14. We can take vacations when places are less crowded not just when school is on break.
15. Learning can be integrated into every part of our lives, not just when school is in session. Learning happens at the grocery store, the park, while watching tv & disussing shows, everywhere, anytime!
16. My kids can work at their own level in each subject. If struggling in math they can be a grade behind. If excelling, they can be one or two grades ahead.
17. We can travel with Hubby & not miss school but also not miss fantastic learning opportunities. School in hotel room & then going to museums & historical sites has been a blessing plus having more daddy/kid time!
18. My kids can learn from real books, not just textbooks. Nothing like reading real novels, historical biographies, journals & the like.
19. My kids get to learn life skills (laundry, cooking, cleaning, finances, etc) as well as academic skills. They are going to be very balanced in life.
20. My kids learn how to communicate with people of all ages, not just those their own age.
21. I get to be there when they have that "ah-ha" moment when they finally understand a difficult concept!
22. We have more family time & my kids grow closer together!
23. My kids can stay kids longer! They don't have to act 16 at age 10 because all their classmates are.
24. My kids have time to experiment & play because 75% of their day is not tied up in being at school & doing homework for school.
25. We can fit school into our lives and not fit our lives around school. School is important, but it doesn't have to dominate what we do, where we go & when we do it.
26. My kids work at their level, not at the level the average student is at. So they aren't bored or completely frustrated.
27. My kids have a say in what they study so they are more eager to study it. Yes, some subjects you just have to do, but why not teach "rocks" if they are interested in "rocks".
28. We have time to make Bible study & Bible memory a part of our day.
29. My kids develop critical thinking skills because we teach them to question things they don't understand & research answers. We also discuss shows we watch & thing we see other kids doing.
30. My kids can be themselves & don't have to conform to school's idea of behavior, dress & thinking.
31. I don't have to spend my time going to school meetings & doing fundraising for school. Parent teacher conference for me involves talking to myself & I do that everyday anyway!
32. I don't have to spend tons of money on school books that my kids don't get to keep. I have a friend who's kid has to do homework without his book because he isn't allowed to take it home. That is crazy!
33. I don't have to spend months teaching my kids how to take & pass ISTEP tests! We can learn real life-applicable things & not just how to take a test & pass it.
34. I don't have to spend 4-6 weeks reviewing everything kids learned last year just so we can teach new concepts. We school pretty much year round so a quick review gets us rolling again.
35. I get to spend time with my kids, see them grow & know they are learning to their potential what the need to learn to be successful in life. I get to challenge them to be extraordinary & not just to get by!

So these are just a few of the reasons I'm thankful I homeschool! I know homeschooling is not for everyone, but I'm so blessed that God has called us to homeschool & can't imagine life any other way!!